


The Past Always Catches Up

by Plumetta



Category: Hunger Games Series - All Media Types
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-30
Updated: 2014-01-30
Packaged: 2018-01-10 14:29:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 945
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1160791
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Plumetta/pseuds/Plumetta
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Haymitch talks to his daughter about The Hunger Games.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Past Always Catches Up

**Author's Note:**

> I don't own anything, the universe belongs to Suzanne Collins.

Hailey Abernathy tried to time coming home from school perfectly today. It was Thursday and there would be about half an hour before Mom came home from shopping and Dad opened his first bottle of liquor. She had to ask her questions before Mom came home and Dad started drinking.

Haymitch heard the door open and saw a very determined look on his twelve year old‘s face. She had her mother’s face but his eyes. He’d seen that look in them before there would be a question coming. He suspected this wasn’t going to be as easy as “Daddy can we keep the kitten, or When can I start wearing makeup?

“Hey Sweetheart. How was school?

She dropped her books on the table. “Is Mom home?”

He briefly hoped it would be about lip gloss. She would enlist her mother’s help with that one. He'd give in to avoid other questions but he just said. “No, she's still shopping..”

“Okay…..we need to talk.”

He actually flinched. All “need to talk” topics could be handed off to her mother….except for one.

He reached for the bottle and began to untwist the top. “What?”

“They said at school that the people in the Capitol were all evil and that’s why they had The Hunger Games. Mom’s from the Capitol. Everybody was staring at me when they said it. Is it true that everyone in the Capitol was evil?

Haymitch sighed. “President Snow was evil. The government was evil. Individual people, that’s a different story. Some were….some weren’t. “Your mother was never evil. Not a minute of her life. Sometimes she was insensitive and inconsiderate but never evil. I don’t want to hear the words Capitol and evil come out of your mouth around your mother, ever. Don’t test me on that.

Hailey frowned. “Dad, I’d never hurt Mom on purpose but….they showed us a tape of a reaping.

“Which one? He asked.

‘Yours.”

He shook his head and took a swig. “Really? 75 reapings to pick from and they show your class mine. This will teach you it’s not only people from the Capitol that can be insensitive. Are they going to show you the killings tomorrow? You can get extra credit, I’ll tell you how many I took out.

Hailey looked down at the floor horrified. “Dad… they just showed the reapings so we could understand what it would be like. Since we’re twelve years old and we would have been in them.

“Did you flinch when you heard my name? He asked.

“No. I knew it was coming.”

“ That just shows that you can’t begin to understand this stuff. Any name that sounded like yours on Reaping Day was terrifying.. You can’t know what it was like to wake up on Reaping Day and not know if your name or your brother or your best friend would be called. You don’t know the horror of actually hearing your name called and expecting to die. You don’t know what it’s like to be lifted into the Arena and you don’t know what you’d do when the killing begins. I killed two people in the first couple of minutes.

Hailey started to tremble. “Dad…you didn’t have a choice and….

“You’re right. I didn’t and neither did a lot of other people, including people from the Capitol. I think it’s important that the teach about The Games in school so it never happens again but it’s too easy to just say The Capitol is bad and the Districts were good..

Hailey squirmed in her chair. He realized his anger was scaring her so he softened his tone. “Look Sweetheart, there are people who will blame your mother just for being born in the Capitol. Did you choose where you were born?

She shook her head.

“Neither did she. I don’t know what kind of person I’d have been if I was born in the Capitol. Maybe I would have been a Gamesmaker.

“Dad, that’s a terrible thing to say.”

“Sweetie, you can know facts but you can’t really know things outside your scope of experience. You can watch a reaping but that doesn’t mean you know what it’s like to be in one. I can’t know what it was like to be raised in the Capitol and your mother doesn’t know what it’s like to be raised in a District. The Hunger Games were evil. The people who thought them up were evil. The politicians in power that kept it going on for 75 years were evil. But I’m not a hero because I was a Victor and your mother’s not a villian because she was an Escort. It’s just the way things were.

Hailey turned around. They heard keys in the door indicating Effie’s return. He held his daughter’s hand.

“Hailey, if you have questions about the Games, I’ll answer them. All of them. I just don’t want to talk about it around your mother. 

“Dad sometimes you’re a little….

He smiled. “Drunk? A side effect of the Games. I promise I’ll be sober every Thursday when you come home from school and I’ll answer anything. You may not like my answers but I won’t lie to you. He patted her on the cheek. Is that a deal?

Hailey nodded.

“Good, now help your mother with all her bags. I’m sure she’s bought out the Hob.

He watched his daughter leave the room. She looked a lot older than twelve right now. He longed for the days when she was a little girl and the problems of the world could be solved with candy and a kiss. Unfortunately time didn’t stand still.


End file.
